PCT AG-IP 7.004 What documents are searched by the International Searching Authority?

7.004. What documents are searched by the International Searching Authority? The International Searching Authority must endeavor to discover as much of the relevant prior art as its facilities permit, and it must in any case consult the so-called “minimum documentation.” Roughly stated, the latter comprises the published patent documents issued after 1919 by France, by Germany from 1920 to 1945 and by the Federal Republic of Germany since 1945, by Japan (for International Searching Authorities other than the Japan Patent Office, only those documents for which English abstracts are generally available), by the People’s Republic of China (for International Searching Authorities other than the State Intellectual Property Office of the People’s Republic of China, only those documents for which English abstracts are generally available), by the Republic of Korea (for International Searching Authorities other than the Korean Intellectual Property Office, only those documents for which English abstracts are generally available), by the former Soviet Union and now by the Russian Federation (for International Searching Authorities other than the Federal Service on Intellectual Property, Patents and Trademarks (Russian Federation) only those documents for which English abstracts are generally available), by Switzerland (except documents in Italian), by the United Kingdom, by the United States of America, by the African Intellectual Property Organization (OAPI), by the African Regional Intellectual Property Organization (ARIPO), by the Eurasian Patent Office and by the European Patent Office; published international (PCT) applications; and, from various dates, about 135 technical periodicals. It is emphasized, however, that, where the International Searching Authority has more than the “minimum documentation” at its disposal, it is obliged also to consult that additional documentation to the extent permitted by its facilities.